Local Roundup: Hanover Topples Concord

West Lebanon — After seeing a big lead vanish in the blink of an eye, Ben Acker scored a game-winning goal late in the third period to lift Hanover to a 5-4 boys hockey victory over Concord at Campion Rink on Monday evening.

The Marauders (7-6-1 overall, 4-5-1 league) led 4-1 after scoring three goals in the second period, a stretch that coach Dick Dodds termed the best period of hockey played by his team this season. The Crimson Tide then knotted the score at 4-4 with three goals of their own in a three-minute stretch early in the third period.

Concord then had a delayed penalty called late in regulation; Hanover possessed the puck long enough for goalie Luke Ratliff to flee for an extra attacker. Shawn Cavallaro rocketed a shot from close range at the Concord net and the rebound went to Gus Lyons, who found Acker in a flurry in front of the goal for the game-winner with just less than four minutes to play.

“It’s a nice win coming back after they scored three goals so quickly,” Dodds said. “We continued to play hard even after they tied it up. Have to give credit to my team for not folding, I’m proud of the way they finished the game.”

The game-winner was the second of the game for Acker. Sam Carey, Andrew Huizenga and Peter O’Leary also scored for the Marauders, who won consecutive league games for the first time this winter.

Cavallaro finished with three assists, Carey had a pair of helpers, and Ben Hartman, Jonathan Goff, Ben Chaimberg and Tom Peters also had assists. Ratliff finished with 19 saves for the Marauders.

Hanover visits Bishop Brady on Saturday.

Berlin 9, Kearsarge 0

Berlin, n.h. — The Cougars’ long trip north was to no avail as they were shutout by the Mountaineers.

Joe Zhou added 12 points and Liam Cusack had eight. MVCS led 36-21 at the break then had 24 points in the third quarter to seal the victory. Sayers now leads the Eagles with 23.8 points per game this season.

MVCS hosts Craftsbury on Thursday.

Stevens 51, Franklin 47

Claremont — The Cardinals held on late to sneak by the visiting Golden Tornadoes.

Ryan Tanguay led Stevens (3-6) with 17 points. Nate White added 15 points while Jordan Haines had 13. Stevens turned a 2-point halftime lead into a 35-28 lead through three quarters. Franklin battled back to take the lead in the fourth before the Cardinals pulled ahead in the final minutes.

Stevens hosts Mascoma today.

Girls Basketball

MVCS 45, Concord (Vt.) 28

Quechee — The Eagles (10-3) employed full-court pressure all night and moved the basketball well to put away the Wildcats (3-9).

Emma Bryan also buried her first 3-pointer of the year for MVCS, which hosts Craftsbury on Thursday.

Thetford 46, Randolph 13

Thetford — The Panthers (13-1) kept it rolling as 10 players scored led by Shyann Josler with 14 points.

Michaela Pomeroy, Ella Chapman and Lydia Leitschuh each added six points. The Panthers committed just seven turnovers and now have 11 or less turnovers in four straight games. Thetford is back in action today with a trip to Harwood.

Hollis-Brookline 59 Hanover 52

Hollis, n.h. — After jumping to a 17-4 lead, the perfect storm of ill effects — off-target free throws, bad bounces and a lack of energy — combined to knock the Marauders (7-1 league, 8-2 overall) from the ranks of the NHIAA Division II unbeatens.

The Cavaliers (3-5) used a 6-0 run to close the gap to seven by the end of the first quarter, then spent the rest of the night taking advantage of Hanover’s misfortune. Bri Hackett led H-B with 16 points; Lexie Hamilton’s 24-point night — buoyed by five 3-pointers — wasn’t enough to save the Marauders.

“We’re an undefeated team with a target on our backs,” Hanover coach Dan O’Rourke noted. The whole night was the worst we played all year. We never got in sync, we were outrebounded and we shot 13-for-31 from the free-throw line. … It was one of those nights when they shoot a free throw, we go to get the rebound, it bounces off our hands and they put it back in. They played with more energy; they were more inspired.”

Holly Schlosser added 10 points for Hanover, which plays the fifth game of a six-game road trip at Pembroke on Friday.

Mill River 57, Windsor 36

Clarendon, Vt. — The Yellowjackets (8-5) were never able to dig out of an early hole in falling to the Minutemen.

Ashleay Wilcox and Mariah Marsh each had nine points to lead the Jacks. Windsor trailed 28-18 at halftime and were then outscored 14-6 in the third quarter.

West Rutland 76, Woodstock 27

West Rutland, Vt. — The young Wasps couldn’t match the imposing size of the senior-laden Golden Horde.

Fair Haven, Vt. — The Hurricanes (2-10) held tight with the first place Slaters for three quarters.

Hartford trailed by eight at halftime and 30-19 after three quarters before Fair Haven had 17 points in the final frame to pull away. Taylor Johnson led the Canes with six points.

“We hung with them for three quarters,” Hartford coach Bill Soule said. “The kids are working hard, their attitudes are good. We’re opportunistic we’ll finish the second half of the season strong.

The Canes host rival Windsor on Thursday.

Wrestling

BF-Hartford Wins Conn. Meet

East Windsor, Conn. — With Steve Cerrone and Nolan Viens winning their respective weight classes, Bellows Falls-Hartford grabbed the championship at the Rodney Smith Tournament at East Windsor High on Saturday.

Cerrone, a Hartford High junior, broke through at 138 pounds with his first tourney win of the season. Cerrone topped two Connecticut competitors to reach the finals, then earned a first-period pin of South Hadley (Mass.) High’s Chris Rojas for the divisional crown.

Viens continued his dominance of his 145-pound class at East Windsor, although he faced his toughest competition of the year. The Hartford High senior pinned his first foe in 58 seconds, took out Fairfield-Ludlow (Conn.) wrestler Chase Lind in the semifinals, 9-1, and used a third-period pin of South Hadley’s Bobby O’Connell, the No. 6-ranked wrestler in Massachusetts, to improve to 30-0 on the yar.